Excitement as two Leicester Cathedral peregrine falcon eggs hatch

Two eggs have hatched - and two more could yet

Two tiny peregrine falcon chicks have been welcomed into the world on the spire of Leicester Cathedral.

Two eggs laid in March successfully hatched on the bell tower on Thursday morning for a breeding pair of the birds of prey.

The first new arrivals of 2024 were caught on camera by a dedicated webcam monitoring the nest which can be viewed online.

Two further eggs laid more than 30 days ago are yet to hatch.

Leicester Peregrines group volunteers said the news was "exciting".

The cathedral's falcon project was launched almost a decade ago

David Gray, from the cathedral's peregrines project, previously told the BBC the project had been launched in 2015.

He said: "We've had some successes and some setbacks but overall it's fantastic to have established the peregrines in the heart of the city."

Peregrine falcons are the world's fastest animal, able to reach speeds of up to 200mph (322km/h) when diving down on to prey.

They nest in high places such as urban towers and rural cliffs and have excellent binocular vision, allowing them to see prey from as far as 1.8 miles (3km) away.

Volunteers have called the new arrivals 'exciting'